By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
The Denver Nuggets held on to beat the San Antonio Spurs 121-119 as Nikola Jokic registered another triple-double this season to help his team grab its 8th straight victory.
Jokic had 26 points, 14 assists and 13 rebounds for the Nuggets (34-18) and Michael Porter Jr. followed with 22 points and 10 rebounds, while Facu Campazzo contributed 9 points and 4 assists.
Derrick White paced the Spurs (24-26) with 25 points, DeMar DeRozan had 24 points and Jakob Poeltl added 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Domantas Sabonis posted a double-double with 16 points and 15 rebounds along with 6 assists to lead the Indiana Pacers (24-27) to a 111-106 win against the Orlando Magic (17-35). Aaron Holiday had a team-high of 20 points and Goga Bitzdze added 5 points and 7 rebounds in 15 minutes coming from the bench. On the other end of the court, Gary Harris had 24 points for the Magic.
Trae Young flirted with triple-double figures as the Atlanta Hawks (28-25) got past the Chicago Bulls with a 120-108 win. Young tapped 42 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds, Clint Capela followed with 22 points and 10 rebounds, Danilo Gallinari had 20 points and Bogdan Bogdanovic added 10.
Zach LaVine had a 50-point performance for the Bulls, while Nikola Vucevic signed off with 25 points and 10 rebounds.
The Charlotte Hornets (27-24) had their way with the Milwaukee Bucks (32-20) in the wake of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s absence, to get away with a 127-119 win. Miles Bridges led the way for the winners with 26 points, while Devonte Graham and Terry Rozier had 20 points each. Jordan Nwora posted 24 points for the Bucks and Thanassis Antetokounmpo had 12.
Jason Tatum became the youngest Celtic to register more than 50 points in a game with his 53-point performance that paced the team to a 145-136 win in overtime against the Minnesota Timberwolves (13-40). Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart added 26 and 24 points respectively for the Celtics (27-26), while on the other end, Karl-Anthony Towns posted 30 points and 12 rebounds for Minnesota.
The New York Knicks (26-27) held on to grab a 133-129 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies (26-24) in overtime, as RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley paced the team with 20 points each. Jonas Valanciunas had a double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds for the Grizzlies and Ja Morant led all game scorers with 26 points.
Zion Williamson scored 14 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter and the New Orleans Pelicans (23-29) beat the Philadelphia 76ers (35-17) 101-94. Brandon Ingram added 17 upon his return and Willy Hernangomez added 10 points coming from the bench.
Tobias Harris led the Sixers with 23 points and Joel Embiid had 14.
Bradley Beal scored six points in the final 6.1 seconds, lifting the Washington Wizards (19-32) over the Golden State Warriors (24-28) with a 110-107 win. Russell Westbrook had 19 points, 14 assists and 14 rebounds for his league-leading 21st triple-double and Rui Hachimura added 22 points and five rebounds for the Wizards. Stephen Curry tapped 32 points for the Warriors, who have lost four of their five last games.
Kawhi Leonard scored 31 points, Reggie Jackson added 26 and the Los Angeles Clippers (36-18) beat the Houston Rockets (14-36) 126-109 to win their fourth straight game. Christian Wood led Houston with 23 points and Jae’Sean Tate scored 18.
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